Tiger Woods and the Riviera Country Club go back. Way back.
The 15-time major champion made his first trip to the private club perched in the Pacific Palisades of Los Angeles as a fan at the Los Angeles Open at just nine or 10 years old, by his memory.
Now 47 and two years removed from a single-car accident that nearly cost him his leg, Woods will make his non-major return to golf this week at the PGA Tour’s 2023 Genesis Invitational, the full-field designated event of the Tour’s 2022-23 season.
Here’s a quick look at Woods’ history at the famed club that’s been a home to some of Hollywood’s biggest stars.
PGA Tour debut
Woods made his PGA Tour debut in 1992 at Riviera as a 16-year-old high school sophomore. Playing on a sponsor exemption as an amateur, Woods shot 72–75 and missed the cut by six strokes.
.@TigerWoods is returning to Riviera for the @GenesisOpen!
He made his PGA TOUR debut there in 1992 at age 16. pic.twitter.com/A2wtlS9x7y
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 4, 2018
Tournament host
Formerly the Los Angeles Open, Genesis Open, Northern Trust Open and Nissan Open, the event now known as the Genesis Invitational has been hosted annually by Woods since 2017, the same year his TGR Foundation became the chief charitable beneficiary.
Wood will make his first appearance as a player at the event since the 2019-20 season. Two days after hosting the 2021 event, Woods was involved in his near-tragic car accident.
Wins
Zero, which is surprising for a guy with 82 PGA Tour wins who loves the course and has played there more than 10 times in tournaments. He was runner-up at Riviera in 1999 after losing in a playoff the previous year when the tournament was held at Valencia Country Club in Santa Clarita, California.
Best rounds and finishes
In all, Woods has played at Riviera 13 times over his career. In lieu of a trophy he’s earned the one runner-up as well as three top-10 finishes, eight inside the top 25. That’s enough for a cool $837,842.14 of his $120,895,206 in on-course earnings.
Woods shot a 7-under 64 in the final round of the 2004 event and has signed for a 65 on three other occasions. He’s finished under par in 22 of his 42 rounds.
Worst rounds and finishes
Woods has missed the cut three times over his 13 starts in 1992, 1993 and 2017-18. He withdrew in 2006 and most-recently finished T-68 in 2020, where he shot 76-77 to finish last among those who made the cut.
Tiger's full history of finishes at Riviera
Year | Finish |
1992 | Missed cut |
1993 | Missed cut |
1997 | 20 |
1999 | 2 |
2000 | 18 |
2001 | 13 |
2003 | 5 |
2004 | 7 |
2005 | 13 |
2006 | W/D |
2017-18 | Missed cut |
2018-19 | 15 |
2019-20 | 68 |